Out of 10 - The Player Performances

Rate the players out of ten, with a brief reason.

Australia

MEK Hussey: 9.5/10. Almost perfect. When dismissed, it was by some brilliant deliveries
RT Ponting: 9/10. Started brilliantly but just fell away slightly towards the end. Great captaincy and fielding.
MJ Clarke: 8/10. A much improved player to what we saw in 2005.
A Symonds: 6.5/10. Did well in his 3 tests. Grabbed a couple of vital wickets and really punished England with power hitting.
ML Hayden: 7/10. Had quite a few starts but should've had more 50+ scores, I feel.
SK Warne: 8/10. Took 17 less wickets but was apart of a stronger, more even bowling attack. I daresay, he wasn't at his brilliant best 100% of the time, but still wowed us with what made him great.
AC Gilchrist: 8/10. Did a great job with the gloves and scored the fastest Ashes century ever, backing up with some fifties. Did get trapped in the way he did in 2005, however.
JL Langer: 6.5/10. Much as the same as Hayden. Played with a lot of aggression at the start, though. More so than Hayden, IMO.
B Lee: 7/10.Came back well after a dismal start to get 20 wickets at 33 and average 21 with the bat
SR Clark: 9/10. Near faultless as Australia's best bowler. Was under bowled by Ponting yet still took the most wickets.
DR Martyn: 3/10. If he played the entire series, it's entirely possible he may have made a century or two. In the two matches he played, he was great to watch but got out far too early.
GD McGrath: 8.5/10. Brilliant start to the series with the 6fer, but faded slightly like Ponting did with the bat. He still had the goods though, making a lot of English batsmen look hopeless.

England
KP Pietersen: 8/10. Scored the most runs for England but continued to get out to oafish shots. People discussing that he should bat at 4. IMO, if Vaughan is still out of the side, he should perhaps be given a shot at 3.
PD Collingwood: 8/10. Was similar to Ponting. A double century is no easy task in Australia for a touring batsman, but should bat at 5 perhaps.Fielded particularly well, too.
IR Bell: 7/10. Was good without being great. 4 half centuries, but no 100's.
A Flintoff: 5/10. So much was expected of him and he just didn't seem to cut it. Showed signs of his dominant bowling form from last years Ashes but couldn't keep it up all the time. Didn't seem to be either here or there with his batting, bowling or captaincy.
AN Cook: 5/10. Could have achieved so much more. Scored a fine century and got a couple of starts and will be thankful that McGrath has retired, otherwise he would have been his new bunny.
AJ Strauss: 4/10. Extremely disappointing tour for him, one feels. Had quite a few starts, some bad umpiring decisions and batted with an almost breezy attitude.
AF Giles: 1/10. So ineffective with the ball. I'd hazard a guess his test career is over now. He did, however, add a lot to team spirit in the field.
CMW Read: 4/10. Kept very cleanly but batted horrendously. Averaged less than Giles with the bat. 'nuff said.
GO Jones: 2/10. Averaged less than Read and wasn't as tidy with the gloves.
SJ Harmison: 3/10. Very poor tour. Though he came back well, his 10 wickets at 61 weren't a pretty site, apart from the 4-48 he took which was quite a good bit of bowling.
MS Panesar: 6/10. Why wasn't he in the side from the start? Attacked in his bowling which was reflected by his E/R.
JM Anderson: 2.5/10. Bowled well in his final test but overall was wayward.
MJ Hoggard: 9/10. Despite his high bowling average, he was by far England's best bowler and player. gave it his all and really did trouble the batsmen.
SI Mahmood: 2/10. Under bowled. But when he did bowl, it wasn't pretty. I can see the potential he has, but he desperately needs a bowling coach (or a better one, if he has one).

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agree with all but one, that is stuart clark being 9/10, i believe he is at least 9.5 if not 10, he was simply superb and looked dangerous any time he was bowled, glad he showed up when he did, we now have a 5 years younger glenn mcgrath.

agree with all but one, that is stuart clark being 9/10, i believe he is at least 9.5 if not 10, he was simply superb and looked dangerous any time he was bowled, glad he showed up when he did, we now have a 5 years younger glenn mcgrath.

Andrew Strauss - 3/10. Got some bad decisions, but was also guilty of throwing his wicket away on several occasions. We needed big opening partnerships, didn't get them.
Alastair Cook - 4/10. Century aside, didn't assert himself very well. Struggled with McGrath's line and length, was rarely in for long enough to face Warne.
Ian Bell - 6/10. Could have converted one or more of his starts into a century, but at least he got the starts to begin with. Proving himself to those who still don't believe he's good enough.
Kevin Pietersen - 9/10. What more could he have done? Was the only England player to put a high enough price on his wicket every time he went out to bat.
Paul Collingwood - 6/10. Outstanding double-hundred and a solid 96, but his only other contribution was a reliable pair of hands. Was arguably the key figure responsible for England's defeat at Adelaide after his 22* off more than 120 balls.
Andrew Flintoff - 4/10. Bowling lacked penetration, batting lacked application, should never have been captain.
Geraint Jones 1/10. The 1 is for his 33 at Brisbane.
Chris Read - 3/10. Kept very well, but needed runs. Didn't make them.
Ashley Giles - 0/10. For keeping Panesar out of the team.
Sajid Mahmood - 2/10. Took the odd wicket here and there. Was mostly terrible.
Matthew Hoggard - 7/10. Was about 30 times better than the rest of the bowling attack.
Steve Harmison - 3/10. 1/10 for the first two Tests, 5/10 thereafter.
James Anderson - 4/10. Struggled to maintain lines and lengths, but did take the occasional wicket.
Monty Panesar - 7/10. Should have played the whole series. Shame Fletcher didn't think so.

Langer: 6 - did what was required of him mostly, got Australia off to a great start in Brisbane.Hayden: 7 - valued his wicket, worked hard and took many a catch. Valuable asset.Ponting: 9 - man of the series, batting was outstanding. Centuries in the first two tests ensured the Ashes were won. Captaincy didn't come under question for once.Hussey: 8.5 - overshadowed by Ponting, Clarke and Gilchrist on a few occasions despite scoring heavily. Streaky century but from the moment he took guard in the second innings at Adelaide the target became much easier.Clarke: 8 - The innings at Perth was one of his greatest. People quickly forgot he was only in the team because Watson got injured.Symonds: 7.5 - a few good spells with the ball and some great fielding as usual. Fantastic innings in Melbourne he's silenced the critics.Martyn: 1 - One good shot in Brisbane to Giles and a couple of shockers. Kudos to him for picking the time to get out and allowing more dedicated players to continue.Gilchrist: 7.5 - One of the most memorable innings in Perth but Sydney was where he performed best. Very important innings to get a lead and keeping was fantastic. His keeping in Melbourne however was a sign that maybe he's having more bad days than in years previous.Warne: 7 - Kept doing what he does and bowled some fine spells. Probably deserved more because of Adelaide, his five wickets in Melbourne were largely undeserved and Cook, Bell, Pietersen, Flintoff and especially Collingwood all had him in check during the series.Lee: 5 - Started very poorly but found a bit of rhythm as it went on. A few tailenders in the last couple of tests ensured that his average was only mediocre and not dire.Clark: 9 - Outstanding. If it weren't for three other bowlers taking wickets in the series it would have been groundbreaking. Hardly bowled a bad ball, got life when there was none and took wickets at important times.McGrath: 7 - His spell in Brisbane set the scene for the rest of the series. Was miserly as usual and possibly underbowled at times. Australian cricket will miss him.

Strauss: 4 - Disappointing. In the first four test he didn't seem to be troubled. No bowler got on top of him until he got out against the run of play. Played a fine knock on a troublesome MCG wicket but looked unsettled a week later.Cook: 6 - Only because I gave Langer a 6. Gritty knock in Melbourne is countered by numerous loose shots outside off. Never looked convincing.Bell: 6 - Should have gotten much more. Did the hard work so many times to then get out. Even so the Australians always liked their chances of getting him out.Pietersen: 8 - Pick of the batsmen. Allowed himself to come under criticism for his attitude.Collingwood: 8 - Two fine knocks in Brisbane and Adelaide ensure that I can't rate him too much lower than Ponting. Made himself known and put up a good case for himself being there. Good hands but still not enough to keep himself in the XI when Vaughan returns.Flintoff: 5.5 A for effort. Limped around in the field but still got through a lot of overs. Was the pick of the bowlers on a few occasions and looked very good in his only notable knock in Sydney. Still not a patch on 2005.Jones: 2 What a rabble. Got points for not humiliating himself with the gloves despite one clear miss off Panesar. For a man who's in his side for his batting I'd be shocked to see him playing again soon.Read: 5 Lost count of how many catches he took in Sydney. Brilliant movement and glovework, keeper of the series by a distance. Scored a few runs but always seemed like an easy wicket.Giles: 1 Had a minor battle with out of touch and un-motivated Martyn and didn't come out a clear victor. Was poor with the bat and might have dropped the match in Adelaide.Panesar: 7 Finally a left-armer who can take wickets. Threatened to turn the series around in Perth and was superb in Sydney for little reward. Won the crowds over and scored a few runs to boot.Hoggard: 7 The only English quick who looked like he wanted to be there and bowled with a purpose. Toiled hard in Adelaide when no-one else looked like picking up a wicket.Anderson: 1 Looked troublesome at times and could have picked up a few more wickets than he did (umpires at The Gabba). Didn't do anything that helped England much and was pushed behind Saj in the pecking order.Mahmood: 1 Much like Anderson but can't be considered unlucky.Harmison: 3 Shocking start to the Ashes. Worked hard and improved, but probably doesn't deserve two more than Saj. Meh, three is still pretty ordinary.

MEK Hussey: 9.5/10. Almost perfect. When dismissed, it was by some brilliant deliveries
RT Ponting: 9/10. Started brilliantly but just fell away slightly towards the end. Great captaincy and fielding.
MJ Clarke: 8/10. A much improved player to what we saw in 2005.
A Symonds: 6.5/10. Did well in his 3 tests. Grabbed a couple of vital wickets and really punished England with power hitting.
ML Hayden: 7/10. Had quite a few starts but should've had more 50+ scores, I feel.
SK Warne: 8/10. Took 17 less wickets but was apart of a stronger, more even bowling attack. I daresay, he wasn't at his brilliant best 100% of the time, but still wowed us with what made him great.
AC Gilchrist: 8/10. Did a great job with the gloves and scored the fastest Ashes century ever, backing up with some fifties. Did get trapped in the way he did in 2005, however.
JL Langer: 6.5/10. Much as the same as Hayden. Played with a lot of aggression at the start, though. More so than Hayden, IMO.
B Lee: 7/10.Came back well after a dismal start to get 20 wickets at 33 and average 21 with the bat
SR Clark: 9/10. Near faultless as Australia's best bowler. Was under bowled by Ponting yet still took the most wickets.
DR Martyn: 3/10. If he played the entire series, it's entirely possible he may have made a century or two. In the two matches he played, he was great to watch but got out far too early.
GD McGrath: 8.5/10. Brilliant start to the series with the 6fer, but faded slightly like Ponting did with the bat. He still had the goods though, making a lot of English batsmen look hopeless.

England
KP Pietersen: 8/10. Scored the most runs for England but continued to get out to oafish shots. People discussing that he should bat at 4. IMO, if Vaughan is still out of the side, he should perhaps be given a shot at 3.
PD Collingwood: 8/10. Was similar to Ponting. A double century is no easy task in Australia for a touring batsman, but should bat at 5 perhaps.Fielded particularly well, too.
IR Bell: 7/10. Was good without being great. 4 half centuries, but no 100's.
A Flintoff: 5/10. So much was expected of him and he just didn't seem to cut it. Showed signs of his dominant bowling form from last years Ashes but couldn't keep it up all the time. Didn't seem to be either here or there with his batting, bowling or captaincy.
AN Cook: 5/10. Could have achieved so much more. Scored a fine century and got a couple of starts and will be thankful that McGrath has retired, otherwise he would have been his new bunny.
AJ Strauss: 4/10. Extremely disappointing tour for him, one feels. Had quite a few starts, some bad umpiring decisions and batted with an almost breezy attitude.
AF Giles: 1/10. So ineffective with the ball. I'd hazard a guess his test career is over now. He did, however, add a lot to team spirit in the field.
CMW Read: 4/10. Kept very cleanly but batted horrendously. Averaged less than Giles with the bat. 'nuff said.
GO Jones: 2/10. Averaged less than Read and wasn't as tidy with the gloves.
SJ Harmison: 3/10. Very poor tour. Though he came back well, his 10 wickets at 61 weren't a pretty site, apart from the 4-48 he took which was quite a good bit of bowling.
MS Panesar: 6/10. Why wasn't he in the side from the start? Attacked in his bowling which was reflected by his E/R.
JM Anderson: 2.5/10. Bowled well in his final test but overall was wayward.
MJ Hoggard: 9/10. Despite his high bowling average, he was by far England's best bowler and player. gave it his all and really did trouble the batsmen.
SI Mahmood: 2/10. Under bowled. But when he did bowl, it wasn't pretty. I can see the potential he has, but he desperately needs a bowling coach (or a better one, if he has one).

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Andrew Strauss - 3/10. On the end of a few shockers, but criminally he never once went on to make a big score after plenty of starts. I can't help but wonder if being overlooked for the cpatiancy has affected him more than his bland public utterances have suggested.Alastair Cook - 4/10. Struggled with the ball slanted across him & his shot selection was poor at crucial times. Gets one more than Strauss as he made one start count.Ian Bell - 5/10. Much, much better than 2005, but to get past 50 four times & not make a ton is pretty unforgiveable. Paul Collingwood - 5/10. Showed fighting spirit in Brisbane & Adelaide, but his tour tailed off dramatically after that. IIRC he never once got past 30 after the first innings in Adelaide & ended up averaging less than Warne. Very much the curate's egg.Kevin Pietersen - 8/10. The only player to really take the fight to the crims, but even he looked beaten in the second innings of the final two tests. Arguably the only Pom who'd definitely make a combined XI.Andrew Flintoff - 3/10. Poor, really. His ankle has denuded him of his potency as a bowler, his foot work has been shamed by its absence in his batting & his captaincy has been, frankly, awful. Defensive & unimaginative.Geraint Jones - 2/10. Kept fairly adequately & not his fault he was selected ahead of Read.Chris Read - 3/10. Kept with his usual pedantic correctness, but his batting was horribly exposed. No more than a 9 at test level I'm afraid, not matter no many runs he churns out in the CC. Ashley Giles - 2/10. Batting was ok, bowling average & he did drop Punter in what may've been the defining moment of the series. Sajid Mahmood - 3/10. Potential (). Nah, seriously he struggled to land two balls in the same spot & any pretensions he had as an 8 have turned to ashes (see what I've done there?) in his mouth.Matthew Hoggard - 7/10. Our best seamer by a country mile, but is always more of a sidekick than a leading man. Batting seems to be regressing too.Steve Harmison - 2/10. He was ranked number one in the world once, you know. I don't know whether it was nerves or what, but his opening ball was possibly the nadir in a series of lows.James Anderson - 3/10. Bowled decently in Sydney, actually, but his lack of overs showed him up in the first two tests he played. A long, long way off the finished article.Monty Panesar - 6/10. Should've played all along, but really wasn't a factor after Perth.

"The PFA does not represent players when they have broken the law and been convicted on non-football matters."- Gordon Taylor in 2009 following Marlon King's release after a prison sentence for sexual assault & ABH

AustraliaJustin Langer - 6 Great first Test, other than that wasn't too dominant.Matthew Hayden - 7 Got a few starts, Melbourne and Perth were great, both knocks that were overshadowed by other achievements but severely underrated imo.Ricky Ponting - 9 Superb throughout, good captaincy, brilliant in the field, a real captains series.Damien Martyn - 2 To be harsh, didn't play well and could have potentially left the side in disarray with a stupid decision to retire. Played like crap, lets be honest, although he would have turned it around later on maybe, but we'll never know.Mike Hussey - 8 - Gun, enough said.Michael Clarke - 7.5Took his chances, played some excellent knocks, showed a huge leap in the maturity department.Andrew Symonds - 7 Melbourne was awesome tbh, good stuff in Sydney as well. Perth was dire though. His fielding was top notch as always. Saved heaps of runs.Adam Gilchrist - 6.5 Mixed series, a failure and then a whirlwind innings was the trend. Was good with the gloves all series except Melbourne which he rectified in Sydney.Shane Warne - 7 Legend, what else can you say. Never got near the 2005 heights although his second innings in Adelaide was the stuff of legends. MCG wasn't too bad either. Good with the bat as well.Stuart Clark 9 Can't believe some people wanted Johnson and Tait in before him. Some of his spells were unbelievable.Brett Lee 6.5 Started off ordinary, came home with a bang though.Glenn McGrath - 7.5 Great start, had flashes of brilliance but looked a tad tired at times. Overall had a pretty good series though.

EnglandAndrew Strauss - 4 Had heaps of expectations before the series but didn't produce in the end. Granted that he got a few bad decisions, but he needed a cool head and some big scores which never came.Alastair Cook - 5 Did a pretty good job considering he was thrust into it with Trescothick jumping ship. Had a great innings in Perth but needed to do more.Ian Bell - 6 Has a future, quite underrated by the Australians for mine.Paul Collingwood - 4 2 good innings out of 10. Didn't do enough.Kevin Pietersen - 7.5 England's best player by a mile, but those times he threw away his wicket in frustration were stupid and if he treated Shane Warne with a little more respect in Adelaide, England would have saved that match. Will be the best batsman in the world in a couple of years, I reckon.Andrew Flintoff - 5 You have to feel for the guy, way too much responsibility for one person. Didn't bowl badly throughout the series but the batting bar first innings in Sydney was pretty poor. Hope this tour doesn't do what last summer did to Graeme Smith.Chris Read - 5 Great with the gloves, hopeless with the bat, not as bad as...Geraint Jones - 2Rubbish with the bat and average with the gloves. The fact he was allegedly on the selection panel is a farceMatthew Hoggard - 7A legend in my books, stood up when he needed to and led the attack. Only thing that kept England together for mine. He can keep his MBE Steve Harmison - 4 The embodiment of England’s failures this Summer, from the first ball he was dire. Credit to him though, he was able to come back and by the last innings of the tour was at his best form. Waaay to late though. Without Jones, he was supposed to lead the attack and his poor form is the primary reason for the scoreline imo.James Anderson, Saj Mahmood - 4 Tried their best, was a little unfair to ask two younger players to stand up whilst the older, more 'level headed' players were falling around them. Get a little bit more stick then they deserve imo. Hope they don't get axed as part of the inevitable witch-hunting that will go on in England pretty shortly.Monty Panesar - 7 There was a reason why everyone was calling for his inclusion on the team. 8 wickets in his first match, didn't shy away when Gilchrist was going after him either. If he was there from the start, who knows. Will go far this one.Ashley Giles - 2 Enough said about the man, shouldn't have been picked and it's not his fault he was part of one of the worst selection bungles in recent history.

Right, I'm looking at no stats or scorecards here, so it's from memory and such like. Haven't watched the entire series for obvious reasons, but saw as much as I could, and more than I should have really, given my work hours and hatred to see my boys lose.

Australia

MEK Hussey: 9/10 - Let's just say I would give Flintoff 9 for last year's performance, this is high praise. He's Australian, but hell, he's likeable, very likeable, and so good. Obviously he has impressed in ODIs for sometime now, and had a good Australian summer, but for me this was the confirmation that he is one of the world's best; glad he never played last year, for obvious reasons....
RT Ponting: 9/10. As has been said, not as good in the last few Tests, but he'd made his mark by then. Whatever you think of him as a person, you have to admire him as a great, an absolute great. His captaincy was greatly imrpoved from 05 as well, in keeping with other series since then.
MJ Clarke: 8/10. Very impressive, expect to see him in Australian teams for a long time. mad to think he would not have played but for Watson's injury.
A Symonds: 7/10. Haven't changed my opinion on him much, but his two wickets were at a crucial time, and but for his century there's a chance it might have been 4-1, not 5-0. Probably wouldn't have, but that partnership with Hayden was the reason there was an innigns victory at the MCG.
ML Hayden: 6.5/10 - Looked better as time went on, but I do feel his best days are behind him.
SK Warne: 8/10 - Stuart Clark's form and McGrath's everpresentness meant less of an onus on Warney, but still performed as you would expect. The only minus points for him are really his poor figures in the 1st dig at Adelaide, and his negative bowling to KP in that match. Absolute legend, natioanlity aside one of my favourite Cricketers, he shall be missed more than any other Cricketer of his generation upon their retirements.
AC Gilchrist: 6/10 - Marvellous ton, and good in parts, but Gilcrhist's best days are well gone with the bat. Hopefully he'll retire soon.
JL Langer: 6.5/10. Best days behind him, and he obviously recognises this. I have a lot of respect and time for Justin Langer; can't help but feel he'll be missed more than people expect.
B Lee: 6.5/10 - Bowled like an Englishman at first, and bowled very well towards the end - but for me this sums Brett Lee up.
SR Clark: 9/10. Should have got MOTS. Marvellous - like Hussey, I can't help but feel glad he never got picked last year, especially as I rememebr reading that he'd been called up at some point. Is this correct?
DR Martyn: 5/10 - Poor, but never got going, and, rightly, retired gracefully.
GD McGrath: 8/10 - Not like the McGrath of olf, but nonetheless, still better than most. It's a shame he's retired as a Cricket fan, but as an Englishman I can't stand the guy (tongue is in cheek, guys)

England

Strauss - 5/10 - Disappointing. I, and many others, expected big things from Strauss this winter, and I can't help but feel he never got started. I think his HS was 50, which is shocking really, but I don't think it tells us anything about him as a player, and he'll come out of this. e should be skipper when Vaughan retires, for sure.
Cook - 5/10 - would be lower but for his ton. Disappointing on the whole, but showed potential at points, and I reckon next time we play Aus, he'll be our dangerman.
Bell 6/10 - Patchy. Failed to convert his 50s into 100s, not close to his performances against Pakistan, but a lot better than his previous effort against Australia, and I daresay better than some people expected.
Pietersen 8.5/10 - Our best player by a country mile. Deserved to be on the winning side, and it's utter bollocks to suggest he isn't a team player. I think he only made one ton, but he always seemed to be the one hanging in there, and he averages over 50 against Australia, after 10 Tests, only 2 of which was he on the winning side; there aren't many players who can make such a claim against such a good side.
Collingwood - 6.5/10 - May seem harsh that he only scores .5 more than Bell, but he really did fade post-Adelaide. Marvellous innings at Adelaide though, and a good fighting effort at Brisbane too. He was disappointing a lot of the time though.
Flintoff - 5/10 - Some may see this mark as generous, but I felt his bowling was unlucky a lot of the time. His captaincy wasn't up to scratch though, and his batting just wasn't like Flintoff. He surely will come back from this disappointment, and the first step in that is to free him from captaincy; I will maintain that without it, he is the world's finest Cricketer.
G Jones -2/10 - Looked in decent nick at Brisbane (decent is maybe generous) but got himself out, as usual, and never looked forwards from there. His keeping his top notch these days, but it's irrelevant, I'd have Harmison ahead of him in the order on current form.
Read 5/10 - Inconsistent with the bat, and decent with the gloves. Nothing more or less than anyone expected really.
Giles - 3/10 - Even though noone really wanted him in the side, we did expect better bowling than what he came up with; facts are that he simply wasn't ready. His batting was as you would expect, as for his fielding being better than Panesar's; I don't think we'd have lost for Adelaide but for Giles' drop of Ponting, Panesar dropped nothing (or nothing when I was watching anyway)
Mahmood - 4/10 - Bowled okay at the MCG (I think), but nothing better than that, dire with the bat, and some dire fielding cost us a wicket that might, but probably wouldn't, have made a difference at Sydney.
Hoggard - 7/10 - Our second best, after KP. His figures don't do him justice, he bowled very well. Unlucky to be amongst such medicority tbh.
Harmison - 4/10 - Got better and better as the series went on, to the point of being acceptable by Sydney. Very disappointing. His first ball was summaticof the series.
Anderson - 5/10 - Looked good at Sydney I reckon, but dire in the other two games. Simply not ready. He'll come back much stronger than this, I have no doubt that Anderson is a fine bowler.
Panesar 7/10 - Good first dig at perth, then not really up to much, though his figures didn't do him justice at Sydney. Still a great prospect.